Instrument Insider

The ic100: fast, painless, portable

By Robert Stoneback, associate editor

The Icare ic100 tonometer has been changing lives across the world. Downey Price, MD, who serves as a general ophthalmologist with Houston Eye Associates says the ic100 is great for both his charitable work and for his regular ophthalmology patients.

Dr. Price sees about 40 people a day at his clinics in north Houston, and the ic100 is used on almost every patient for screenings and routine exams.

“I think [the ic100] is pretty accurate,” he says. It is much more comfortable for patients, compared to noncontact tonometers.

The ic100 tonometer is held up to the patient’s eye to get a rebound measurement for gauging IOP. It does not require drops or air to take readings. When the ic100’s disposable probe makes momentary contact with the cornea, the length of contact time and deceleration is used to determine IOP levels; the higher the patient’s IOP, the shorter the amount of contact time between cornea and probe and the faster the probe decelerates. “It’s so easy compared to the puff,” meaning a Goldmann-style tonometer, especially when dealing with children. “Sometimes they get really frightened by the puff, and it starts off the exam with negativity and fear.”

The Icare ic100 uses rebound tonometry to measure intraocular pressure.

EFFICIENCY HERE AND AFAR

The pediatric ophthalmologists at this clinic use the ic100 on all the kids they see, and none of them has reported discomfort. The doctors will use it on each other first to demonstrate, and that takes away a lot of a child’s fear, Dr. Price says.

A study from the Journal of the American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus, published in December 2015, examined 214 eyes of 109 pediatric patients. They used an Icare rebound tonometer and Goldmann tonometer on each child, and found the children “more easily tolerated” the Icare.

Dr. Price says the instrument doesn’t increase the number of patients seen each day, but examinations are quicker and more efficient.

Another advantage — it’s powered by four AA batteries and does not require any special power source or charger.

The handheld, rebound tonometer is the tool of choice for Dr. Price when he’s providing eye care in developing countries for his charity, Benevolent Missions International. The charity visits countries such as Belize and Fiji several times a year, performing pro-bono cataract and pterygium surgeries.

When there are 150 Fiji patients waiting in line to be examined, a device like the ic100 “just works so efficiently and painlessly,” says Dr. Price.

THE PROBE VS. THE PUFF

Studies are underway to evaluate the correlation between the ic100 and Goldmann for readings in glaucoma patients and suspected glaucoma patients, according to Dr. Price.

While the two tonometers usually have similar results, glaucoma testing will likely continue to favor Goldmann until the ic100 more closely duplicates the outcomes of the Goldmann, he adds.

“Top ophthalmology medical institutions in the U.S. still consider Goldmann applanation as the standard for glaucoma testing for patients who have a diagnosis of glaucoma, and the Goldmann has been considered the most accurate method of IOP measurements,” Dr. Price says. “However, over a period of time, if the ic100 continues to detect pressures as accurately as the Goldmann, that may change.”

NEW FEATURES

The ic100 adds new features over its previous model, the TAO1i. The ic100 has a “built-in intelligent position assistant,” called EasyPos, which uses red and green lights to help determine the correct alignment for the tonometer.

Also, its new automatic measuring sequence allows six consecutive measurements to be taken all by the push of a button, or six individual measurements can be obtained just like the TAO1i.

The new ergonomic design makes the ic100 easier to use and its large color display is easier to see.

The staff at Houston Eye Associates prefer these new features, says Dr. Price, as they make measurements much easier to take. The device takes only minutes to learn, he says.

It’s been great for patients, too.

“With the Icare, it’s so benign … No one objects to us using that.” OM